2019 South Dakota Tipped Minimum Wage
The 2019 South Dakota Tipped Minimum Wage is $4.55.
Effective 2019-01-01Source: State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)Verified 2026-09-01
Compared with 2018
| Item | 2018 | 2019 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minimum cash wage | $4.425 | $4.55 | +$0.125 (+2.8%) |
Who it applies to
Tipped employees and their employers in South Dakota
What changed this year, and why
South Dakota's minimum cash wage for tipped employees increased to $4.55 per hour, effective January 1, 2019. This amount is half the state's general minimum wage. Employers must ensure that wages plus tips together reach at least the full minimum wage.
Common questions
- What if an employee's tips do not bring their total pay up to the full minimum wage?
- The employer must make up the difference so that the employee receives at least the full minimum wage for every hour worked.
- How is the tipped minimum wage set each year?
- It is set at half of the state's general minimum wage, which is adjusted annually based on changes in the cost of living.
Who counts as a tipped employee
In South Dakota, a tipped employee is a worker who regularly receives tips as part of their compensation. When this applies, your employer may pay you a reduced cash wage rather than the full state minimum wage. For 2019, that minimum cash wage is $4.55 per hour, which is half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees. This lower direct wage is permitted because your tips are expected to make up the difference between the cash wage and the full minimum wage. If your job does not regularly generate tips, your employer must pay you at least the full state minimum wage without relying on any tip credit.
The hourly minimum wage for tipped employees will be $4.55/hour effective Jan. 1, 2019, half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees.
State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)
What a tip credit is, and the cash wage underneath it
South Dakota allows employers to take a tip credit, paying tipped workers a direct cash wage lower than the full state minimum wage. For 2019, that cash wage is $4.55 per hour, which is half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees. The tip credit equals the difference between this direct wage and the full minimum wage. Your employer can only use this credit if your tips make up the gap. If your cash wage plus your tips do not reach the full minimum wage for all hours worked, your employer must pay the shortfall. This structure means the tip credit is conditional on your actual earnings, not assumed or guaranteed.
The hourly minimum wage for tipped employees will be $4.55/hour effective Jan. 1, 2019, half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees.
State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)
When the tips do not get you to the minimum wage
In South Dakota, wages and tips combined must equal at least the minimum wage for every hour you work. If your cash wage of $4.55 per hour plus the tips you receive in a pay period do not add up to at least the full state minimum wage, your employer must make up the difference. This protection ensures that the tip credit never results in you earning less than the minimum wage. The employer bears the responsibility to track your total earnings and pay any shortfall, so you are guaranteed to receive at least the minimum wage regardless of how slow business may be in a given week.
Wages and tips combined must equal at least the minimum wage.
State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)
The notice an employer owes you before it takes the credit
South Dakota law requires employers to provide tipped employees with notice before taking a tip credit. This notice must explain that the employer is paying a reduced cash wage of $4.55 per hour, that tips are credited against the full minimum wage, and that you have a right to keep all your tips unless they are part of a valid tip pool. Without this advance notice, your employer cannot legally claim the tip credit and must pay you the full minimum wage. The notice requirement ensures you understand how your pay is calculated and can verify that you are receiving at least the minimum wage when your tips are included.
The hourly minimum wage for tipped employees will be $4.55/hour effective Jan. 1, 2019, half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees.
State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)
Your employer, your manager and your supervisor may not keep your tips
In South Dakota, a tipped employee’s cash wage for 2019 is $4.55 per hour. The employer may apply a tip credit — counting the worker’s tips toward the full minimum wage — but only the employee’s tips count. The employer, the manager, and the supervisor may not keep any share of those tips. If an employer takes a portion of the tips, it loses the right to pay the lower $4.55 cash wage and must pay the full state minimum wage, with wages and tips combined reaching at least that level. The rule exists so that the reduced hourly rate is reserved for workers who actually receive the tips.
The hourly minimum wage for tipped employees will be $4.55/hour effective Jan. 1, 2019, half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees. Wages and tips combined must equal at least the minimum wage.
State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)
Which tip pools you can be made to join
In South Dakota, tip pools are limited to employees in occupations in which they customarily and regularly receive tips. This means you can only be required to share your tips with other workers who also regularly receive tips as part of their job, such as other servers, bussers, or bartenders. Non-tipped employees like cooks, dishwashers, or janitors cannot be included in the tip pool. The purpose of this restriction is to ensure that tip pooling remains a way to share tips among workers who depend on them, not a way to redistribute tips to employees who receive full wages from their employer. If your employer requires you to pool tips with non-tipped workers, the arrangement may be unlawful.
The hourly minimum wage for tipped employees will be $4.55/hour effective Jan. 1, 2019, half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees.
State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)
Doing two jobs for one employer
In South Dakota, an employee who performs both tipped and non-tipped work for the same employer is a tipped employee only with respect to their employment as a server or other tipped occupation. This means if you spend part of your shift serving customers and part doing non-tipped work like cleaning or preparing food, your employer can only pay you the tipped cash wage of $4.55 per hour for the time you spend in the tipped role. For the hours spent on non-tipped duties, your employer must pay you the full state minimum wage. This rule prevents employers from using the lower tipped wage for work that does not generate tips, ensuring you receive appropriate compensation for each type of work you perform.
The hourly minimum wage for tipped employees will be $4.55/hour effective Jan. 1, 2019, half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees.
State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)
How each figure was verified
Each number below was read from a stored copy of the document named beside it, and checked to occur word for word in the quoted sentence. The digest is of that stored text.
State Minimum Wage to Increase Jan. 1 (South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation)
- Minimum cash wage
The hourly minimum wage for tipped employees will be $4.55/hour effective Jan. 1, 2019, half the minimum wage for non-tipped employees. Wages and tips combined must equal at least the minimum wage. These increases will apply to all South Dakota employers, with some limited exceptions.
Other years
Every South Dakota Tipped Minimum Wage year · Tipped Minimum Wage in every state